Lifestyle

Tokha Toastmasters Club organizes Toastmasters Fair to engage the community

By Kritika Baniya

Tokha Toastmasters Club successfully organized a Toastmasters Fair at Adhyayan School, Samakhusi, with the aim of bringing Toastmasters closer to the community through an open, interactive, and informative platform. The idea for the Toastmasters Fair was born from the club's growing interactions with guests who had attended regular meetings but still sought a deeper understanding of Toastmasters before committing further. Recognizing this gap, the club envisioned a more approachable and immersive format-one that would allow curious individuals to explore different aspects of Toastmasters at their own pace and engage in direct conversations with experienced members. From the early planning stage, the initiative received strong guidance and encouragement from Sunetra Pradhananga, Division B Director, and Saroj Tamrakar, Division C Director. Both leaders played a key role in shaping the concept, offering strategic direction, and motivating the organizing team to think beyond conventional meeting formats. Their involvement continued throughout the planning process and extended right up to the main event day, ensuring alignment with Toastmasters' broader mission of community outreach and leadership development.

The fair itself was designed as a walk-through experience featuring six themed rooms, each dedicated to a core element of Toastmasters. This format allowed visitors to move freely, ask questions openly, and engage in informal discussions rather than sit through a single structured session. The first room, About Toastmasters, was facilitated by Saugat Bastola (Area B3 Director), who introduced guests to the organization's global presence, mission, and supportive learning environment. Pathways Learning, the second room, was led by Milan Poudel (Area A3 Director), who explained Toastmasters' modern education system and how members progress through personalized learning paths. The third room focused on Mentorship in Toastmasters, where Sambriddi Karki, President of Eloquence Toastmasters Club, and Prajwol Tamrakar (Area C2 Director) shared insights on the mentor–mentee program and its role in supporting member growth both within and beyond clubs. In the Networking in Toastmasters room, Nirajan Shrestha (Associate Program Quality Director) highlighted how Toastmasters helps members build meaningful professional and personal connections alongside communication skills. The fifth room introduced guests to Table Topics, Toastmasters' well-known impromptu speaking segment. Facilitated by Ankus Adhikari (Area C3 Director) and Sandeep Dhawa (Associate Public Relations Manager), the session allowed participants to experience spontaneous speaking in a relaxed and engaging environment. The final room presented a Toastmasters Meeting Demo Setting, offering visitors a realistic look at how a standard meeting flows, including meeting roles, structure, and etiquette.

Alongside the themed rooms, stalls representing different Toastmasters clubs were set up, giving guests the opportunity to learn about various club cultures, meeting styles, and schedules, and helping them identify clubs that best suited their interests. The event was supported by several partners and sponsors, including Adhyayan School as the venue partner, Denara Bags, Glazing Nails Studio, Savitri Kanchenjunga Agarbatti, Lahana LunchBox, and Thrive Factory. With over 70 footfalls, the Toastmasters Fair reflected strong community interest and demonstrated the effectiveness of engagement-focused outreach. Tokha Toastmasters Club expressed gratitude to all supporting leaders, participating clubs, and volunteers whose collective efforts-from early planning to execution-made the event a success. By creating a space that encouraged conversation, curiosity, and connection, the Toastmasters Fair succeeded in making Toastmasters more accessible, relatable, and welcoming to the wider community.